Modeling particle sedimentation in viscous fluids with a coupled immersed boundary method and discrete element method

Numerical techniques have increasingly been used to model fluid–particle two-phase flows. Coupling the immersed boundary method （IBM） and discrete element method （DEM） is one promising approach for modeling particulate flows. In this study, IBM was coupled with DEM to improve the reliability and accuracy of IBM for determining the positions of particles during the sedimentation process within viscous fluids. The required ratio of the particle diameter to the grid size （D/dx） was determined by comparing the simulation results with the analytical solution and experimental data. A dynamic mesh refinement model was utilised in the IBM model to refine the computational fluid dynamics grid near the particles. In addition, an optimum coupling interval between the IBM and DEM models was determined based on the experimental results of a single particle sedimentation within silicon oil at a Reynolds number of 1.5. The experimental results and the analytical solution were then utilised to validate the IBM–DEM model at Reynolds numbers of 4.1, 11.6, and 31.9. Finally, the validated model was utilised to investigate the sedimentation process for more than one particle by modeling the drafting-kissing-tumbling process and the Boycott phenomenon. Benchmark tests showed that the IBM–DEM technique preserves the advantages of DEM for tracking a group of particles, while the IBM provides a reliable and accurate approach for modeling the particle–fluid interaction.

A preliminary study on air microorganism in a wood mill

The air microbial species and quantities in a wood mill in Harbin, China weremeasured using sedimentation plate method. Results showed that the microbial quantity in the air atthe workshop without depurator (54939 cfu·m^(-3)) was 2.1 times that of the workshop withdepu-rator (25768 cfu·m^(-3)). The depurator could purify air microorganisms at the workshop, witha purifying rate of 53.1%, but it did not reach the standards of clean air. Comparatively thedepurator is effective in reducing the quantity of air actinomyces, and some kinds of airactinomyces, such as Scabies, Cinereas and Hygroscopicas, can be clean out, but it is not veryeffective to bacteria and fungi. It is suggested that more effective and feasible methods should bedeveloped for purifying air microorganisms at the workshop in the future.

Soil particle size range correction for improved calibration relationship between the laser-diffraction method and sieve-pipette method

Particle size fraction(clay, silt, and sand) is an important characteristic that influences several soil functions. The laser-diffraction method(LDM) provides a fast and cost-effective measurement of particle size distribution, but the results usually differ from those obtained by the traditional sieve-pipette method(SPM). This difference can persist even when calibration is applied between the two methods. This partly relates to the different size ranges of particles measured by the two methods as a result of different operational principles, i.e., particle sedimentation according to Stokes’ Law vs. Mie theory for laser beam scattering. The objective of this study was to identify particle size ranges of LDM equivalent to those measured by SPM and evaluate whether new calibration models based on size range correction can be used to improve LDM-estimated particle size fractions, using 51 soil samples with various texture collected from five soil orders in New Zealand. Particle size distribution was determined using both LDM and SPM. Compared with SPM, original data from LDM underestimated the clay fraction(< 2 μm), overestimated the silt fraction(2–53 μm), but provided a good estimation of the sand fraction(53–2 000 μm).Results from three statistical indices, including Pearson’s correlation coefficient, slope, and Lin’s concordance correlation coefficient, showed that the size ranges of < 2 and 2–53 μm defined by SPM corresponded with the < 5 and 5–53 μm size ranges by LDM, respectively. Compared with the traditional calibration(based on the same particle size ranges), new calibration models(based on the corrected size ranges of these two methods) improved the estimation of clay and silt contents by LDM. Compared with soil-specific models(i.e., different models were developed for different soils), a universal model may be more parsimonious for estimating particle size fractions if the samples to be assessed represent multiple soil orders.

Effect of polycarboxylate-type superplasticizer on the paste fluidity based on the water film thickness of flocs

The excess water film theory and the properties of flocs are integrated to examine the effect of the polycarboxylate-type superplasticizer on the paste fluidity. The theory states that excess water can surround the flocs rather than the particles and that the cell consists of a floc and a superficial water film. Experiments on limestone powder pastes were conducted to verify the theory. The superplasticizer dosage （sp%） and the water-powder ratio by volume （Vw/Vv） were systematically varied. A sedimentation balance method was used to measure the size distribution of the flocs in the limestone powder pastes. The water film thickness （WFT） of flocs was then calculated and shown to determine the paste fluidity. Based on this WFT of flocs, the effect of the sp on the paste fluidity was determined and then compared with the effect of water.

NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF WIND-INDUCED MOTION IN SUSPENDED SEDIMENT TRANSPORT

In regions with broad water surfaces such as lakes, reservoirs and coastal areas, the wind stress on the flow motion generates a significant impact. The wind stress is an unsteady force which makes numerical simulation difficult. This paper presents a two-dimensional （2-D） mathematical model of the impact of wind-induced motion on suspended sediment transport at Beijing＇s 13-Ling Reservoir. The model uses the Diagonal Cartesian Method （DCM） with a wetting-drying dynamic boundary to trace variations in the water level. The calculation results have been tested against in situ measurements. The measurements confirm the model＇s accuracy and agreement with the actual situation at the reservoir. The calculations also indicate that wind stress holds the key to suspended sediment transport at Beijing＇s 13-Ling Reservoir, especially when westerly winds prevail.

Numerical simulation of flow and bed morphology in the case of dam break floods with vegetation effect

The purpose of this study is to establish a depth-averaged 2-D hydrodynamic and sediment transport model for the dambreak flows with vegetation effect. The generalized shallow water equations are solved using an explicit finite volume method with unstructured quadtree rectangular grid, and in the hydrodynamic model, a Harten-Lax-Van Leer（HLL） approximate Riemann solver is used to calculate the intercell flux for capturing the dry-to-wet moving boundary. The sediment transport and bed variation equations in a coupled fashion are calculated by including the bed variation and the variable flow density in the flow continuity and momentum equations. The drag force of vegetation is modeled as the sink terms in the momentum equations. The developed model is tested against lab experiments of the dam-break flows over a fix bed and a movable bed in vegetated and non-vegetated channels. The results are compared with experimental data, and good agreement is obtained. It is shown that the reduced velocity under vegetated conditions leads to a decrease of the peak discharge and a rise of the water level of rivers and also an enhancement of the sediment deposition.